NHS in Shropshire special report: Losing a life too high a price to pay, says mum
Tess Finch-Lees, from Bishop's Castle, says she dreads to think of what would have happened if her seriously injured son Archie had had to travel to Telford for emergency treatment after a crash.
Her husband and six-year-old son Archie were injured in a serious car crash caused by a man who was later convicted of reckless driving, who came around the bend on the wrong side of the road. She is among those calling for the A&E departments to remain at both Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and Telford's Princess Royal Hospital.
In her case the RSH is around 22 miles away. The route to Telford's Princess Royal Hospital is an extra11 miles and significantly longer in journey time.
She said: "The crash happened near Bishop's Castle and they were taken to Shrewsbury's A&E. A journey that normally takes 45 minutes by car took well over an hour by ambulance.
"The paramedics, who were incredible, were forced to drive slowly because every bend in the road caused excruciating pain to my son, strapped in a hard stretcher with head blocks."
She said that once at A&E, her son and husband received first class care from all the nurses and doctors, adding: "I will forever be indebted to them, not just for their skill and professionalism, but for the kindness and compassion they extended to my family. Several of the medics indicated that journey times to A&E significantly impact clinical outcomes. The longer the time, the greater the risk of mortality. They mentioned 'the golden hour'.
"I dread to think what my son's outcome – his injuries were the worst – would have been had he had to endure another 20 minutes to Telford. When you have a critically-ill child in the back of an ambulance, distance can mean death. That's why a county this size needs both A&Es.
"Despite ambulance response targets being set for a reason, delays mean increased risk of mortality. They're constantly missed in this county due to under-funding. It can take ambulances over an hour to reach seriously ill people in South Shropshire already, then they face over an hour to get to A&E.
"As a mother who has seen first hand the calibre of staff at RSH, as well as the pressure they're under, it's unconscionable to me that health bosses would suggest closing one of our A&Es. Both are already stretched to breaking point. Closing one would simply de-stabilise the other. Even more clinicians will flee to Australia and businesses and families will flee a county whose NHS provision is akin to that of a developing country.
"If the cost of living in this beautiful county is increasing the odds of our children dying in an ambulance on the way to A&E, that's too high a price to pay."
